Phuket Fishing Report: Monsoon Tuna, Reef Trevally, and Prime Low-Light Bites

Name’s Artificial Lure, checking in with your Phuket fishing report. We’ve got classic southwest monsoon conditions this afternoon and evening: humid, air temps sitting around the low 30s, and a steady onshore breeze 10–15 knots out of the west-southwest. Skies are a mix of sun and build‑up cloud with the usual chance of a squally shower sliding through later. Seas are a bit lumpy on the exposed west side, around 1–2 meters, calmer in the lee of the islands. Tides today are running a typical Andaman mixed semi‑diurnal pattern, with a solid push on the incoming. The key bite windows have been the last two hours of the flood and the first hour of the ebb, especially around reef edges and channel mouths where that current really pinches. Sun popped up early over the hills on the east side and dropped behind the Andaman this evening, so the low‑light periods have been prime. Boats that got out for first light or stayed through dusk are the ones sending in the better reports. Offshore, the boys working the drop‑offs west of Racha Noi and Racha Yai have been into good numbers of **tuna** and **bonito**, plus a few **sailfish** showing on the surface. Slow‑trolled deep‑diving hardbodies in blue‑white and green‑yellow, plus small skirted lures, have been the ticket. A handful of **dorado/mahi** have also been hanging around floating debris lines; they’re smashing anything bright and fast. Around the closer reefs and islands – think **Koh Hei (Coral Island)** and **Koh Maiton** – the jigging crowd is finding **trevally**, **queenfish**, and the odd **mackerel** on 20–40 g metal jigs in sardine and anchovy patterns. Short, sharp jigging just off the bottom or mid‑water has been working best on the stronger part of the tide. Inshore on the east side, around the mangrove channels and muddy flats of Phang Nga and the back of Chalong Bay, there’s been steady action on **barramundi**, **mangrove jack**, and smaller **grouper**. Live prawns and small baitfish under a float, or lightly weighted, are still king. For artificials, suspending minnows in natural prawn or mullet colors, plus 3–4 inch paddle‑tail soft plastics in dark green or motor oil, are doing damage along the snags and rock walls. Night sessions around the piers and lighted structures – especially **Chalong Pier** and the squid boats moored nearby – have produced **calamari**, **small snapper**, and **grunters**. Small squid jigs in pink and orange, or tiny pieces of squid strip on size 6–8 hooks, are all you need there. If you’re looking for a couple of hot spots right now: - **Racha Noi drop‑off, west side** – work deep‑diving lures and heavy jigs along the contour for tuna, bonito, and a shot at sailfish when the current is running. - **Maiton Island edges** – great half‑day option with trevally and queenfish smashing metals and poppers, especially around the tide changes. Best overall lure spread this week: one deep‑diving minnow in blue‑white, one in green‑yellow, a couple of 20–40 g metals, and a pack of 3–4 inch soft plastics. Best natural bait: live prawns, live scad, and fresh squid strips. That’s the word from the water around Phuket. Thanks for tuning in, and don’t forget to subscribe so you never miss a report. This has been a quiet please production, for more check out quiet please dot ai. Great deals on fishing gear https://amzn.to/44gt1Pn